Zyrkon's Chapter 1 Act 2: The Fool[OPEN]

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Zyrkon wasn't welcome in Appleloosa. The thought of Sweetheart suddenly snapping at him reminded him of Tea Shots, whom he still loved, and made him uneasy again. But, there he was, camping in front of the mines he believed would be silver mines. His only company was a bonfire that warmed him up since the dusk of this day. This changeling was a fool, but not the kind of fool that would wander through the mines in the middle of the night. Nuh-huh!

"Ugh... Lovesick...", he complained to himself, searching his backpack for something. From it, he took a pot, powdered leaves of some kind and a canteen, shaking it a bit only to realize he was running short on water, "Great, gotta refill tomorrow... EXCELENT, I'll have to go to where I am hated... If I just found a spring nearby..."

The night sky was clear, with a nice view from the Moon... While water is about to get boiled for his tea, he gazes at the Moon, smiling a bit. "Glad you helped me, Luna... ".

Soon enough, a pleasant sweet fragrance came from his pot, which was now off the fire and partially emptied, while Zyrkon was sipping a Black Tea while going back to his star gazing.

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As fast as Stardust was, he had an astonishingly hard time actually getting fresh supplies; word did spread fast, and Stardust had found himself distrusted almost on sight. It was disturbing to him, and although he did regret his tirade, he was nowhere near Sweetheart or Silver to apologize to them. He had to continue on; deep down he knew doing this was right.

However, Stardust did eventually manage to get the supplies he needed, by taking a detour to a contact of his; a frequent customer a bit away from Appleloosa. Luckily, the nameless contact was like minded, and actually offerred to help clear Stardust's name a bit, though the contact didn't divulge how. While he appreciated the gesture, Star decided to go without that for now, to save it until he really needed it.

So by dusk, the colt managed to return to the Silver Mines, by which time Zyrkon had set up camp...sortof. The colt landed softly, adjusting his saddlepack, which had the supplies he got for the changeling. "Hey Zyrkon." he greeted him with a smile.

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Stardust's arrival caught Zyrkon with such surprise that a classic spit take happened, with tea spraying out of his mouth and into the fire. "S-STardust?! Why are you here?! You saw them, they don't trust me! They will brand you traitor or something! Why?!", Zyrkon was confused, but not angry. Deep inside, the changeling had a hunch on why Stardust came to him.

"You just felt you had to, right? I just hope this doesn't put you in any trouble... Do you like Black tea?", Zyrkon motioned toward the pot with his head, "It might be a bit cold by now, I didn't expect the temperature to drop that fast at night, but I can put it to heat up again.". There was only enough for one more cup, however... "I would make more, but I didn't fill my canteen in Appleloosa for obvious reasons.".

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"Yeah, you nailed it." he replied with a chuckle. He wasn't as bothered as he should be, although there was another reason to it rather than his whole emotional surpression thing. He wasn't really that close to the population of Appleloosa anyway...at least, not as much as he'd liked to be. Deep down, he wouldn't lose much. He then listened to Zyrkon's comments about tea and running low on water.

"That's actually what took me so long to get here." he slide his saddlepack off, stretching a little once the weight had finally gotten off. "I wasn't sure whether or not I'd be able to leave, least I could do was get you some supplies." he decided to get the first one out of the way, handing him a canteen filled with water. "They ponies at the saloon must have spread the word already, had to talk to one of my contacts outside of town to get them." he shared part of the story.

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"I know exactly how it is...", Zyrkon split the water evenly between the canteens and then served Stardust some tea in his own cup, "Back in my days in Las Pegasus I had ponies left and right claiming to see me as a changeling to the police, but I often had a little help from the PD. Since I was a coroner and helped them a lot, it was easy to request them to keep that whole drama away from me or even suspend all searches of a "changeling disguised as a green unicorn with gambling habits". Sure, I was disguised, but I have never caused any harm there.".

While Stardust were to drink tea, Zyrkon went around him and massaged his shoulders and the base of the wings. "Everytime I think of things like that I realize how much I changed. The obsession for feeding replaced with desire to be accepted, wicked plans on consumption replaced with curiousity about all beings... I even consider myself inferior to ponies, so it gives me strength to try and be like them. Earn the love, rather than steal it. Attain kindness, rather than fear. Learn, so I can teach. ... I just had a thought. If I can get Sweetheart to listen to me without forcing her, if I can get her to accept me as I am, maybe I can get Tea Shots to forgive me."

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Stardust took a seat when the changeling offerred him some tea. While he didn't come here for it, its not like he was in a rush to do anything, hopefully he could wait until the town cooled down a bit. "Thanks for the tea." he smiled. It was nice for a change...to have someone empathize with him over a hardship. When he was bullied back in flight school, nopony was there, even his parents hated the idea of him resenting the issue. Having someone who was able to relate to him for a moment, albeit on a different scale, was a breath of fresh air.

His wings twitched a little in surprise when the changeling began to massage him. "O-Oh, that isn't necessary-" he tried to save Zyrkon some time, but the changeling was lost in his own words, but he didn't argue. It did feel nice, now that he got to enjoy it a little. Then a fun thought was presented; if Sweetheart could accept Zyrkon, things would be easier. "Maybe...We can always hope, right?" he gave an optimistic tone to Zyrkon.

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"Hope alone is not enough. If we want changes to happen, we must go into action. I could have just remained around Ponyville until things cooled down and hope that Tea Shots would be calm enough to accept me again, but I choose to take on this mission of looking for other good changelings...", Zyrkon stopped massaging briefly, but then resumed, "It was strange... That Silver Tongue pony... Maybe I have seen him somewhere else? Maybe it was his strange behavior? Could it be... No, maybe I'm just overthinking."

What did Zyrkon just think? Perhaps he didn't feel like talking about it. With a brief yawn, the changeling stopped massaging and said "I think I'll get to sleep now... This chilling air is so relaxing for me... Did you bring covers with you? If not, I can lend you my traveler's cloak. It's not much warm, but is comfortable."

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ooc: figured I'd have a bit of fun here, the RP in italic is the dream)


Stardust felt much better as the massage continued, the pegasus letting himself relax a bit more. "You're right...your path is difficult, but just sitting around does nothing." he admitted, but then wondered about Silver...he certainly was odd, pony or not. To be more willing than the other ponies in Appleloosa to give Zyrkon some kind of chance. Maybe...just maybe...nah, that would be a bit stupid...put possible. Zyrkon stopped massaging, and had mentioned about getting to sleep.

"Oh! That reminds me." he fished through the backpack he brought along, taking out some of the supplies, two rolled up sheets of canvas cloth, wooden poles and stakes, and some rope. He didn't plan on camping out aswell; the two-tents worth of supplies was intended to allow Zyrkon to have a spare, but seeing as things were right now, it made a bit of sense. With a surprising efficiency for a young pony like him, the pegasus set up both tents. "It probably wouldn't be safe if anypony happened to see a sleeping changeling, right?" he asked.

"I brought my own, just to be safe. Thanks for the offer, though." he half-lied. He did indeed bring covers, one for each, although like the tents, both were intended for Zyrkon. Besides...now that he thought about it, camping did seem like a bit of fun anyway.

When all was said and done, Stardust bid Zyrkon a good night as he went into his own tent, laying down and placing his head on an improvised pillow; which was really his vest just rolled up and stuffed into his backpack. Wasn't the best, but it got the job done.

About an hour or two would pass, and Stardust's mind would finally allow itself to dream.

Stardust found himself inside a dark room...no, a cave of sorts. The light was just bright enough to let him make out his surroundings, but there was no clear path. He was flat on his back, and immediately the colt put his hoof to his right ear, as if hoping to check something. He got up as quick as he could and stepped to the side, flinching when a large rock fell and broke upon the cave's floor.

That's right...there was a cave in...It must have happened when he was asleep. His heart sank...why was he left in here? He was certain there were other ponies there with him when he was sleeping. No, that didn't matter, he had to get out of here somehow!

The pegasus would tense up in his sleep, he would never get used to such a harrowing dream.

He felt around and searched...no way past the rubble that blocked the entrance to the cave he and the others had come through...he hoped the other ponies were safe, but he couldn't get an answer if he was stuck in here too. He galloped down further into the cave, slowing down when he heard a voice.

'You can't run forever...' it was such a cheesey line...but it still bothered the pegasus. 'You can't keep locking it away, you can't hide forever.' the voice taunted him. His eyes widened a little before he turned around.

"What makes you say-" he tried to ask, only to feel something grab him by the throat and shove him against the cave's wall. Trying to breath, the pegasus looked forward to look at the assailant. He couldn't make it out properly...all he could figure from it was that it was a pony...it had wings just like him, and its ear had a notch in it.

'Because it is always there.' the voice became more threatening, the shadow-pony growing a bit larger before kicking the pegasus in the gut.

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"Oh, you shouldn't have...", Zyrkon was moved by this pegasus's kindness, even helping him a little, though he never set up a tent in his life. Actually, this is the first time he camped out with somepony, and he was finding it fun! But how long would the fun last? Soon everything was set and each would have their own tent and cover, a place to rest while protected from sight of any hostile and from this could night.

However, unlike Stardust, this changeling didn't fall asleep any soon... It was a little past midnight, before he fell into a sudden slumber... But what would he dream of? What was there to dream of this time?

~~DREAM?~~

The city he found himself in was a weird mixture of Las Pegasus and Manehattan. Zyrkon wandered alone, calling for somepony to come. ... No answer... That went on until someone finally replied, but the voice was in his head.

"Zyrkon?! You?! How did you find me?!"

He knew what it was. Another changeling was soon forming out of thin air before him, but this was a simple drone.

"Wait, you are- Lyif?!"

The drone sighed and twisted his expression into a smug, before responding.

"How long has it been, big bro?"

"Months, years maybe. I don't even recall. You were so small back then."

"I haven't been counting the time. It's pointless, you know."

"For me it matters... So, what has been going on?"

"You were quickly replaced by Vyolet following your exile, I was assigned to harvesting ponies to bring to the hive... Oh, She is hunting for you, by the way."

"Urgh, Vyolet... Out of all the smart ones she had to choose the "mucus-for-brain" for a purely strategical position. At least you were choosen for something that doesn't involve combat. But now... Why is She hunting me?"

"Didn't tell, didn't put a bounty on your head. Perhaps for answers... You are near Silver Mines, right?"

"Are you reading my mind? 'Cause I can tell that you aren't so far from me either... Appleloosa?"

"Oooooooh, ALMOST got me... I've left Appleloosa this dusk! I'm going with a caravan back to Manehattan. So, want me to inform Our Queen about you?"

"I've severed my ties with the hive, I decided to be myself... If you want to tell her about me, tell that and nothing else."

"Severed ties? But how come you still remember of my name?"

"Because I always- I... Always treated you as my little brother..."

"I suppose that explains... Oh, I gotta cease contact now. I'm seeing some ponies are getting suspicious of my silence."

Without further words to exchange, Lyif disappeared and left Zyrkon to reflect upon his own words.

"Is he really my brother? Or was it our choice?"

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As the two went through their respective dreams, time would pass more and more, until the sun finally rose, the classic sound of a rooster calling in the distance, even though the colt had no clue how such a rooster could be that loud, or why a lone one would be relatively close. Either way, Stardust had woken up, and the pegasus rubbed his head as he yawned. Another sucky dream... he mentally complained, shuddering a little before he took a deep breath.

Put it aside... he took another. Its not wanted... a third. ..not needed. a final deep breath, and the colt was back to smiling. He stood up and stretched, and now he was back in a good mood as he poked his head out of his own tent, to see if Zyrkon was out and about or not. He wouldn't disturb the changeling if he was still asleep, and he'd sit patiently, sipping some water from his own canteen.

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Zyrkon had left a pan in the weak fire, water boiling for a mushroom stew, his bag lying open some hooves away from the fire for safety reasons, the notebook with a marker inside a cooking recipe page. However, his tent was empty. Where did he go? Anyone could check the contents of his bag in the mean time, but nothing worth much attention: The pony anatomy studies notes and cooking recipe shared the same notebook, a scroll had been partially filled with an autopsy report and a note at the corner hints that "Proper paper for autopsy report needed. Appleloosa may have those?", several packs of powdered leaves, flowers, roots, peels and sticks, all labeled in different flavors and mixes... Obviously teas.

Zyrkon soon came back from inside the mines, carrying a lantern in his mouth. "Oh, you woke up? Sorry, I would have woken you up, but... Not everyone likes waking up before sunrise. So I went searching for a caravan in the surroundings, put the water to boil and explored a bit of the mines. Oh, we'll be having Mushroom Stew this dawn."

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The pegasus noticed the fire going, and the water was boiling. He could only assume Zyrkon had started it already, he didn't see any signs of any others dropping by. He also noticed the open bag and the empty tent. However, before he could even try to look, he noticed Zyrkon had come back from inside the mines. Well crap... he thought before he nodded.

"Sorry about sleeping in." he let out another yawn, opting not to talk about his dream. "But I'm glad you're safe, even though Sweetheart did turn hostile, she does have a point; the mines are dangerous." he expressed his relief before being told about the mushroom stew. "That sounds fantastic." he complimented the changeling on the choice of food. Then it was time for some small talk too. "So, how were the mines, anyway?"

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"Well, aside from the fact the beams are starting to crack apart in some of the shafts and that there might be toxic gases in some others... I have found traces of silver and a small gem I want to pry from stone. If I were to classify it's danger level I'd say it is 3 out of 5 so far. Just structural threat, I don't know the depths yet. Anyway, to our meal...", he lifted a bag with some mushrooms from between the rocks and began dropping them, one by one, in the boiling water, disposing of the poisonous or halucinogen ones while making use of the good ones.

"My brother was around last night... I don't know where he is right now, but he has been to Appleloosa. Odd that I didn't sense him when I was there, I left myself as an open book for any changeling to read me and still... He only contacted me last night. Ah, enough of me, tell me about you. Did you sleep well?", Zyrkon didn't know if Stardust had a nice sleep. The changeling had his own tent to sleep in and didn't hear anything suspicious last night...

[Queen Chrysalis]

She sensed one nearby.   A Changeling, open to the hivemind.  But, this one was different.  This one wasn't one of hers.  She had to see for herself.  If there were other hives in Equestria, she'd have her work cut out for her in her takeover.  She made sure to find him without giving herself away, keeping her mind clear of his hivemind.  Something she'd be sure to do from here on out, unless she needed to speak to her own changelings.

---

As the sun rose over the desert, the sound of crackling flame erupted near Zyrkons tent, about twenty feet away.  A few spouts of green flame erupted in a circle, creating a dome that slowly sank into the ground, leaving a Unicorn standing, staring toward the tent.

Cutie Mark: A Book with a questionmark on it

"Oh, my... That always leaves me a bit thirsty...."  The pony said, her voice soft, and sweet.  As she glanced around her, she blinked, her face turning to one of confusion.  "Where am I now?  I should really get better control of this spell....  And, um... Can either of you gentlecolts spare some water?  My throat is absolutely parched."  She asked, her eyelashes fluttering lightly.


She took this time to get a good look at the duo.  One was a Pegasus.  Young, but still eligible for her needs.  The other was, in fact, a Changeling.  And not even one in disguise.  She kept her gaze soft toward the two, waiting for the right moment to question the bug, and his intentions, and not wanting to seem too eager.

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Stardust's ears lowered a little, why would someone really want to take such risks? Toxic gases, structural issues; last thing he wanted was a cave in or for them to die from breathing poisonous gas. Either way, Zyrkon had taken the risk. "Are you sure its worth the risk, Zyrkon?" he asked, but then the conversation was brushed aside by the idea of mushroom stew, and questions about if he slept alright. "I could have slept better, but not too bad." he chuckled, only to hear the sound of another fire. He was quick to turn his attention in the direction of...a blue unicorn mare?

He was a bit confused, what would she be doing here? He hadn't seen her face around Appleloosa, and this place was sure out of the way. His question would be answered, however, when she mused about the fact a spell had done it. The strangest part of it was; she was not immediately reacting to Zyrkon's appearance, not even a hint of fear of the changeling. Since Zyrkon was a bit preoccupied, Stardust offerred her a smile and stood up.

"Sure thing, ma'am." he picked up his canteen, walking over to give it to her. "Here you go, enjoy." he felt a little warm inside. Being helpful like this always made him feel good, and it didn't matter who was on the receiving end. Sure, he didn't trust her quite yet; things seemed way too...convenient? He would be sure to keep an eye out for anything more suspicious.